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Paul E. McKenney is a computer scientist known for work on concurrent computing and operating-system kernels. His contributions include read-copy-update, developed for systems in which reads are frequent and updates must coexist with them.^[ref]

The key read-copy-update distinction is between removing an object from a shared data structure and reclaiming its storage. An earlier reader may still hold a reference after removal; reclamation waits until the relevant readers have finished. That separation permits lighter synchronization on the read path. It is an example of how the lifetime of a shared object becomes part of a concurrent algorithm.^[ref]

With David Howells, he also authored the kernel guide to circular buffers and their memory barriers.^[ref]